GENEVA – The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Ms. Margaret Sekaggya, will visit Honduras from 7 to 14 February 2012.

“The purpose of the mission is to evaluate, in an objective and impartial manner, the situation of human rights defenders in Honduras,” Mrs. Sekaggya said. The Special Rapporteur also added that she will seek to “create constructive dialogue with the Government in order to ensure that all human rights defenders can carry out their peaceful activities without fearing for their security.”

The Special Rapporteur is scheduled to meet with Government officials, representatives of the legislative and judicial branches, a broad range of civil society actors, the United Nations and diplomatic delegations.

She is due to visit Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba, where she has also requested to meet with relevant local authorities and civil society.

Mrs. Sekaggya will give a press conference in Tegucigalpa at the Office of the United Nations at the end of the mission on 14 February 2012, during which she will present her preliminary findings.

A final report on the visit will be presented to the Human Rights Council in 2013.

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Mrs. Sekaggya, a lawyer from Uganda, was appointed Special Rapporteur by the Human Rights Council in March 2008. She is independent from any Government and serves in her individual capacity.

For more information about the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, log on to: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/defenders/index.htm